


see you when

by halcyonskies



Series: OTP Challenge [18]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe- No Supernatural, Caring Dean, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Issues, Good Boyfriend Dean, M/M, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-17
Updated: 2016-08-17
Packaged: 2018-08-09 09:45:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 897
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7797016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/halcyonskies/pseuds/halcyonskies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As hard as it can be to spend any amount of time with his family, Castiel is glad to have them. Especially at times like this.</p>
            </blockquote>





	see you when

**Author's Note:**

> 18th Challenge - Death In The Family

Everywhere Castiel looked he saw black. Black suits, black ties, black hats, black dresses. If he were to look in a mirror, Castiel knew the only real spot of color in the whole room would be staring back at him. 

Pops had never been a fan of black.  _ “It’s so  _ bluh,  _ you know? The absence of color and all that. I like blue. And red. And green. And, uh, you know _ . . .  _ all the others.” _

So Castiel had worn blue instead. A nice button-down, because this was still a wake, with a tie and everything. But he hadn’t sprung for the suit either. He knew he looked as awkward as he felt in them, and in any case, Pops had never cared about stuff like that either. More often than not, his wardrobe choices consisted of holey jeans, worn t-shirts, and scruffy bathrobes.

Dean had followed his lead – his nicest (only) pair of slacks and a red soft-knit sweater, probably about the most formal set of clothes Castiel had ever seen him in. It made him smile, just a little bit, to think about how similar Dean’s tastes were to his father’s. He knew he was blessed to have been able to introduce the two of them before Pops got really sick; they’d got along famously, just as Castiel had suspected they would.

That Dean had agreed to come with him today meant the world to Castiel. It helped to know that Pops’ death was a blow to Dean too, that they could share some of that grief with one another. After the wake they’d probably return to the hotel and spend the night telling stories about all of Chuck Shurley’s various exploits, those Castiel had witnessed himself and some he’d only ever heard from his siblings. No doubt a few hard shots would shirk the edge off the worst of the melancholy. 

“Hey, you want something to eat? I’m gonna go up,” Dean murmured, passing a few careful strokes over the round of Castiel’s shoulder.

He squinted thoughtfully over at the trestle table that had been set up for the food. “Something to drink. No booze. If you’re going to eat, you should try the turnovers Missouri brought."

“Dude, apple?”

Castiel nodded, watching as Dean stood and threaded his way through the crowd. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gabriel shaking his head, an expression of wry amusement on his face. 

“You’re not subtle, you know that?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“Bullshit,” Muriel snorted. “You wanted to go up half an hour ago. You just don’t want to talk to Anna.”

Castiel shrugged, though he didn’t disagree. It wasn’t that he didn’t care for his oldest sister; he loved her the same as any of his other siblings. But they’d never gotten along, not since she’d left all those years ago, back before Castiel was even out of grade school. She’d never gotten along with their father either, so why she’d taken it upon herself to coordinate all of this was beyond Castiel. Guilt, maybe, or regret, or some misplaced sense of duty. He supposed it didn’t really matter.

Still, it had been a relief when Dean offered to go up. Anna had been hanging around the buffet table all afternoon, chatting up the various well-wishers that had gathered to pay their respects, and Castiel hadn’t relished the possibility of getting roped into a conversation with her. 

Hannah frowned at him from her position on the couch, perched on the arm next to Muriel. “It seems a little childish to be avoiding her, considering the circumstances.”

Castiel didn’t have a chance to be offended by her lack of understanding; before he could open his mouth, Michael had replied, “No amount of consolation is going to magically make my siblings better friends, Hannah. It is what it is.”

Muriel’s girlfriend seemed scandalized by the very idea, though Castiel couldn’t really blame her. She was an only child, and had never had brothers or sisters to fall out with. Thankfully, Dean returned to the loveseat only a moment later, stalling any further comments Hannah might have had on the subject. 

“Snagged you a coke,” he said, nestling back into the space between Castiel and Gabriel. “And these turnovers are fucking amazing, man. You think Missouri would give me the recipe?”

“Fat chance.” Gabriel made an undignified noise, propping his head up in his hand. “She gives me the evil eye every time I ask.”

“That’s not saying much, Gabe. I bet she’d be glad to give it to a  _ decent  _ human being.”

Anyone on the outside looking in might have though the lot of them looked disrespectful in that moment, squabbling playfully amongst themselves in the midst of his father’s wake. Even Anna, who knew better than most, was giving them an unimpressed look over the shoulder of one of their many cousins. 

But Castiel didn’t care. As long as Pops had been sick, most of them had been saying their goodbyes for weeks. His death hadn’t been easy, but Castiel had prepared for it. His heart wasn’t as heavy as he always thought it would be; it was nice, he decided, to sit here with his closest family and share their burdens with one another as they always had. As far as he was concerned, it was better to laugh than to cry. 

 


End file.
